Chapter 688 Meeting The Diplomat

Chapter 688 Meeting The Diplomat

Reaching the posh meeting room, Astaroth didn't wait for the guards to announce his presence and walked in.

This startled the diplomat, along with his two guards, who jumped into a protective stance, weapons drawn.

Since the two countries were on good terms, and part of an alliance, the guards had been allowed to keep their weapons.

This made Astaroth laugh, as he looked them both in the eyes.

"Put those toys away. I'm not an enemy."

The guards wanted to step closer to the man who had so abruptly barged into the room, but a hand clasped on both their shoulders, followed by words. n-/o-.v(-e/.l-)B/)1-(n

"Stand down, men. That is the king of Stellar Woodlands."

The two men were slightly confused. They had met the king, a few years back, when talks about this kingdom joining the alliance had come on the table.

And this was not him.

Astaroth smiled and walked toward the diplomat.

"Pleasure to meet you, sir. I am Astaroth, king of this blooming kingdom. I was told you wanted a meeting, and the queen is currently using the throne room, so we will have it here instead. Rest assured, the room is just as safe."

Stretching out his hand for a handshake, Astaroth kept a wide smile on his lips.

Two Royal Guards had come in behind Astaroth, and seeing the two still-drawn swords, they brought their hands to their pommels. But a quick raised hand from Astaroth interrupted their movements.

The diplomat nodded.

"Good. Then this makes my work a lot easier. As this is your first year participating in the exercises, I am sure you have many questions regarding the events themselves, but this would be to discuss with the next envoy, who will come next week. The events haven't been formally decided, since we couldn't get in touch with you, and you have to approve of them as well, given your seat in the alliance.

"But I am not here to discuss this. Today, I am here to discuss your invitee. Have you decided on which kingdom or force you wanted to invite, and do you have their coordinates if they are a mobile force?"

Astaroth knew they were here for this. At first, Phoenix had wanted to ask questions about whom they were allowed to invite, but since she was busy, and the diplomat had been so vague about it, he figured he could invite whomever he wanted.

"I do. I would like to invite an Abnormal Guild called the Knights of the Sun. And they are currently in a stronghold deep in Ash Elven territory. I hope that is not an issue?"

Astaroth wasn't sure if they would send a messenger their way, since the Ash Elven territory was a bit of a contentious area at the moment. But he had already decided who he wanted to send, and Phoenix had agreed.

They could wait until the next year, before using this as a tool to make diplomatic connections to smaller kingdoms. Since they were surrounded by the Elven forests anyway, it didn't matter.

Gerald looked at Astaroth with a slight frown for a moment, before going back to his politician smile.

"That is a good choice. There were talks in other kingdoms about sending some Abnormal soldiers with the Natives, given your kind's rapid growth. But most kingdoms prefer to stick to their known factors.

"It will be a welcome sight to see a troop composed entirely of your kind. The Matriarchs of Themiscus had expected you to be so bold and do something like this."

Astaroth watched as both men behind the diplomat bowed their heads at the mention of the matriarchs.

'They're almost like cult members. Do they revere the Matriarchs?' he wondered silently.

"As for their location, some exact coordinates would be best if you can, but an approximate will also do. We will send a messenger with a magic contingent, so they won't have issues going to a from the Ash Elven kingdom."

Astaroth happily obliged, as he pulled the coordinates from his map and wrote them down on a piece of parchment. Gerald took the piece of paper, smiled, and scribbled something else on it, before, with a snap of his fingers, it disappeared into a flash of flames.

"Now that this is done. On to the second matter. The rules," Gerald said, laying back into his sofa.